ARTHURIAN ART

John Duncan RSA RSW
(1866-1945)

The Scottish painter and illustrator John Duncan was
born in Dundee, Scotland and studied there at the School of Art. After graduating, he came to London
for three years working as an illustrator. Later, he studied briefly at the School of
Verlat, Antwerp, and then Dusseldorf.
From 1892 onwards, he lived in Edinburgh, exhibiting at the Royal Academy in London.
He became ARSA in 1910, RSA in 1923, and RSW in 1930.
Duncan was influenced by the Pre-Raphaelites and Celtic myth and legend. Other
subjects include landscapes, murals and stained glass, and tempera. His illustrations are more like
Beardsley, with the use of black and white imagery and the strong, cruel feminine figures.
Duncan's Tristram and Isolde may be seen at Edinburgh and Riders of the
Sidhe at Dundee.